Right after an apparent assassination attempt on President Donald Trump during the White House Correspondents’ Dinner on Saturday night, Iran’s Tasnim news agency raised doubts about whether the shooting might have been staged.
Tasnim, which has strong connections to the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC), suggested that the incident, occurring at the start of the dinner at the Hilton Hotel in Washington, D.C., could be a “big show” designed to enhance Trump’s approval ratings, according to some authorities.
The agency speculated that the shooting might be a ploy to boost Trump’s image ahead of the midterm elections—or perhaps even to be wielded against Iran or other nations.
Tasnim pointed out “certain signs that make this incident seem like a Trump production,” including that the president had narrowly avoided another assassination attempt months prior in Butler, Pennsylvania, just before the 2024 presidential election.
“Mr. Trump leveraged this article for election propaganda; some suggest it may have been orchestrated for the midterms,” the Iranian news agency claimed.
“In a situation that was supposed to be critical and secure, President Trump tweeted about being a hero and brave, even announcing his decision to remain at the event!” Tasnim remarked.
Currently, Iran is engaged in tense negotiations with the Trump administration concerning its nuclear enrichment program and recent U.S.-Israel military operations targeting the Islamic regime. The regime has previously faced accusations of plotting against Trump.
In March, a federal jury found a man named Asif Raza, a Pakistani national, guilty of attempting to kill Trump in 2024 after he had received training with the Iranian Revolutionary Guards.
Another alleged Iranian operative, Farhad Shakeri, was reportedly involved in plans to hire individuals in the U.S. for Trump’s assassination, receiving instructions from the Revolutionary Guards, ahead of the 2024 election.
The individual suspected in the shooting on Saturday night is reported to be a 31-year-old resident from California, with no known connections to Iran.
